Walter Hagen on Golf and Being in the Moment This Week at LiveAuctionTalk.comRosemary McKittrick is a storyteller. Her LiveAuctionTalk.com website is full of helpful information about the art, antique and collectibles world. Visit the site and sign up for a free weekly subsc

News-Antique.com - Jun 03,2011 - Golf pro Walter Hagen reeked confidence and being number two on the golf course held no interest to him. He won the 1914 U.S. Open and also the 1919 Open. From 1921 to 1929, he added five PGA Championships and four British Opens to his record. In 1922 he was the first native-born American to win the British Open.

Walter seemed easy going enough but on the golf course there was a shrewd, intensely focused way of being behind that demeanor. You couldn’t rattle the guy. That alone was enough to shake up his competitors.

“I expect to make seven mistakes a round. Therefore, when I make a bad shot, I don't worry about it. It's just one of those seven,” he said. Walter understood how to deal with disappointment on the course. He played the game moment by moment with little or no baggage leftover from the last shot. And he didn’t like being without a golf title.

Walter was born on Dec, 21, 1892 in Rochester, N.Y. He started out as a caddy at the Country Club of Rochester and used some of the money to help support his family. In his spare time he played golf as much as he could and made his professional debut in 1912 at age 20.

On Feb. 3, PBA Galleries, San Francisco, featured Walter Hagen lots in its Fine Golf Books & Memorabilia auction. A one-of-a-kind putter designed by and made for Walter stamped Walter Hagen on top of the head sold in the auction for $2,280.